The poem, ‘The Proud King’ by William Morris can be seen as a replica of the bible story on King Nebuchadnezzar and the legendary story on King Solomon from Talmudic text. In the poem, ‘The Proud King,’ we see King Jovinian wake up and begin to eulogize his fame and riches.
Due to his wealth and fame, King Jovinian relegates his father’s reign as inferior to his as his father’s kingdom is seen as ‘Kernel of my dogs.’ He berated his late father as a ‘prince of narrow lands’ and promised to ‘Rise higher’ that his father or he would ‘like poor wretches die’.
Due to the satisfaction derived from his self-assessment, the King openly declared: ‘What need have I for temple or for priest,/Am I not God whiles that I live at least’. He reaffirms ‘I am God myself.’ The following day, King Jovinian wakes up from his sleep and decides that he will be going for a hunting game.
He recounts, ‘To-day through green woods will we run’ and ‘I … intend to make it better for game and play’. The King puts on his ‘best attire and rode with heart right well at ease, deep-chested hound’ in ‘the hottest of sun/When all the freshness of the day was done.’
When the king gets to a river, he sits ‘in the water sported leisurely’ after he had left all his royal embodiment and signet on his royal horse. Unknown to King Jovinian, a strange individual had carted away with his ‘rich attire.’ He threatens to deal ruthlessly with the unseen and unknown thief.
Tired of shouting in that lonely place, the King stops and decides on the next line of action. He sees a certain house beyond the stream. It was the house of a ranger nearby. In ‘his naked skin,’ King Jovinian approached the metallic gate and would wish that he is treated as King by the lord of the house.
But to his greatest disappointment, he realises that the gatekeeper fails to accord kingly respect to him even as he vehemently asked to be brought before the lord of the house. Reluctantly, the gatekeeper brought King Jovinian in to meet with his boss who also failed to recognise Jovinian as king but asked that he be given food and clothe.
Angrily Jovinian leaves to find himself on the street again having realised that someone else sits on the throne. Thinking that he has been betrayed by his lords, the King went into the streets lying dejectedly on roadsides in great distress. Out there in the open during the night, Jovinian sees flashes of light shining in the dark, and from it he sees a lord carried aloft by some bearers in the company of soldiers.
The King begins to rain causes on Duke Peters to get his attention. When he did, he tries to make the duke recognise him by asking him few questions: ‘Who gave thee all thy riches and thy place/Well if thou canst, deny me, with such grace…Peter swore of old….’ Unfortunately, Duke Peters could not recognise him as he thought that Jovinian is a madman.
By daybreak, Jovinian managed to get to a cart owner who helped him to get to the palace. He secretly sneaked across the first gate before being caught while trying to go through the second gate. Jovinian sees himself arrested by the soldiers who had served him as their king.
He begins to scream that he is king. The sitting king asked that Jovinian be brought to him. While in front of the sitting king, the queen and the lords, Jovinian begins to say that he is King Jovinian. But to his amazement, the queen failed to recognise Jovinian as her king.
This drove Jovinian mad as he finds it impossible to believe. He was thrown out of the palace and warned not to return to the palace. Jovinian remembered the house of an old priest he had last visited when he assumed office newly as a king. The priest initially could not recognise Jovinian, not until he began to cry to God.
Then the priest apologises for not recognising him at the first instance and provided Jovinian with clothing and a horse to return to the palace. Though sceptical, Jovinian returned to the palace and was accepted by his servants and soldiers who recognised him as their king.
While Jovinian goes into his room, a servant calls his attention to his wife. He goes to his wife and sees her asleep. Still amazed at what had happened to him, the angelic figure that had sat on his throne appeared and spoke to Jovinian. He tells Jovinian not to ever become proud again but note that whatever he had achieved is because God allowed it. So Jovinian turned out to be very humble to his lord and people, knowing that God resists the proud
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